Worker Rescued After Trench Caves in at Construction Site

A 25-year-old worker suffered minor injuries Thursday after being trapped for more than two hours in a cave-in at a Glendale hotel construction site where a similar accident in August killed another worker.

Two dozen firefighters and city workers worked carefully to free John Jehlik of Long Beach, who was trapped up to his chest in dirt at the bottom of a 15-foot-deep hole at 100 W. Glenoaks Blvd.

On Aug. 10, Enrique Ayala, a 33-year-old drilling company foreman for Malcolm Drilling Co., was buried headfirst in another trench cave-in. A series of trenches are being dug next to the Verdugo Wash and filled with concrete to anchor the $36-million, 18-story Red Lion hotel.

Cal/OSHA had concluded that no negligence was involved in Ayala’s death, spokesman Rick Rice said. But after sending two investigators to the accident scene Thursday, the state ordered the construction site closed until officials meet today with construction companies working on the project, Rice said.

The meeting will focus on ways to prevent future cave-ins, Rice said.

Jehlik was standing on the surface next to drilling machinery as it dug into a 40-foot-deep metal-encased trench at 9:30 a.m., when the ground underneath him collapsed, dragging him into a sinkhole next to the trench, Glendale Fire Department Capt. Steve Wood said.

Rescue workers attached ropes to Jehlik, surrounded the hole with wood shoring to keep more dirt from falling in, then carefully dug him out of about five feet of dirt. Jehlik’s right knee was bent underneath him and his back was pressed against a rock, requiring workers to be cautious, Wood said.

Jehlik, an employee of Wagner Construction Co., was taken to Glendale Adventist Medical Center for treatment of a sore knee and possible internal injuries. He was listed in good condition Thursday afternoon, a hospital spokeswoman said.

Wagner officials said Thursday’s accident was the company’s first cave-in.

“There’s always risk in construction--that’s the nature of the beast,” said Michael Cornelius, a company vice president who was at the job site during the rescue.